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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27571318">What Happened in San Francisco</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/butterflycollective/pseuds/butterflycollective'>butterflycollective</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Matt Houston, Women's Murder Club (TV), Women's Murder Club - James Patterson</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Action/Adventure, Bar Room Brawl, Fun, Multi, Romance</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-11-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 03:47:48</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>11,585</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27571318</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/butterflycollective/pseuds/butterflycollective</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>C.J. flies to San Francisco for a job interview and meets up with four members of an exclusive Club.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Matt Houston/CJ Parsons</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Borrowing characters from both Matt Houston and the Women Murder's Club (a blend of the book and TV series) for fun.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Cindy sighed as she waited at the table for the rest of the Woman's Murder Club to join her. Claire had called saying that she would finish up with the last stiff of the day before being able to head there for the first round of margaritas.</p><p>Lindsey had to stay at police headquarters until later in the evening to finish up a case that she and her partner Rich had been working on for weeks. Cindy bristled at the news because of course; she had been shacking up with Rich for over three months. The rest of the Club had just learned about it and of course they had congratulated her for finally landing a guy and the round of drinks had been on Lindsey. The ballsy lieutenant hadn't been all that enthused at first because despite her engagement with Joe, she had the hots for her partner. Claire just shook her head at her long-time friend and had told her to get with the program, and that was that Cindy who supposedly was her friend had found a guy who made her toes curl and Lindsey as her friend should be overjoyed, not cranky jealous.</p><p>Cindy had arrived first having just made the deadline on some fluff piece she got stuck writing since being grounded from the crime beat because she had been accused of compromising her journalist integrity by sleeping with one of her sources which had been Rich. She had told her editor to hell with that and had picked up her purse, gotten into her VW convertible and continued onward to the restaurant.</p><p>On her way, Jill had called her on her cell and told her to save a table and to just chill out already about Lindsey harping on her happiness with Rich. If Rich's police partner couldn't keep her feelings for Rich under control despite having the most gorgeous guy in the city getting set to marry her, then she needed to go see a shrink.</p><p>The bored looking waitress came to their table and Cindy ordered another drink, figuring that she needed to be good and sauced before Lindsey arrived if she came armed for bear to go another round about Rich.</p><p>"I'll take another margarita with extra tequila," Cindy said, "and tell my friends when they get here that I'm starting on dinner without them."</p><p>Just then Claire came waltzing through the door, dressed in some comfortable clothes which was all she wanted touching her skin after spending a day working on carving up bodies in the morgue as the city's second highest ranking medical examiner behind her prick of a control freak boss.</p><p>"What you want to drink," Cindy asked her friend.</p><p>Claire just dropped into her seat.</p><p>"I can't drink anything hard core while I'm still feeding the kid."</p><p>Cindy nodded, just remembering that Claire had a baby, a miracle child really considering she had discovered that she was pregnant after coming out of her coma after being shot by a mad gunman last year.</p><p>"I'll take a ginger ale with a slice of lime," she told the waitress.</p><p>The waitress looked at her as if not believing it but jotted it down and scurried off to the kitchen, passing Jill by as the prosecutor headed towards her friends' table. She had a svelte looking woman with shoulder length wavy brown hair with her.</p><p>"Who's that," Cindy asked, while idly eating some tortilla chips.</p><p>Jill smiled.</p><p>"It's C.J. Parsons," she said, "We were sorority sisters in college while we both went to Stanford."</p><p>Cindy looked her over and raised her brows.</p><p>"You look like a lawyer," she said, "but nice to meet you anyway."</p><p>C.J. chuckled at them.</p><p>"Jill's right," she said, "You are a lively crowd."</p><p>"Our fourth's not even here yet," Cindy said, "Wait until you meet her."</p><p>C.J. sat down next to Jill in the booth and ordered a Scotch on the rocks.</p><p>"Are you from here," Cindy asked.</p><p>C.J. shook her head.</p><p>"I'm here from L.A. on business," she said, "and I ran into Jill in the courthouse."</p><p>Jill grimaced.</p><p>"She kicked my ass at a preliminary hearing."</p><p>C.J. shrugged.</p><p>"I'm getting paid good money to do that," she said, "And I'm staying with a good friend of mine."</p><p>Claire grabbed some chips before anyone else had the chance.</p><p>"How long are you in town?"</p><p>C.J. looked at her Scotch.</p><p>"Until tomorrow afternoon," she said, "</p><p>The three women looked at each other.</p><p>"Then we got to go out and have us some fun," Cindy declared.</p><p>Jill looked doubtful.</p><p>"I've got a big trial tomorrow."</p><p>Cindy flicked a chip at her.</p><p>"Party pooper."</p><p>Jill folded her arms.</p><p>"Okay, what do you think we should do then?"</p><p>Cindy gave it some serious thought. She really wanted them to paint the bay area town red but how could they do that…in a brand new way?</p><p>"Let's go take her to see the dancing," she said.</p><p>Claire and Jill looked at each other. C.J. thought she saw some flush in the prosecutor's cheeks but she couldn't be absolutely sure.</p><p>"Dancing," C.J. said, nodding, "I love to do that to unwind."</p><p>Cindy burst out laughing.</p><p>"I don't mean we do the dancing…."</p><p>Jill rolled her eyes.</p><p>"She means that we watch them dance."</p><p>C.J. understood or so she thought.</p><p>"I really don't know…"</p><p>Cindy smiled widely.</p><p>"Oh come on," she cajoled, "Let's finish up this round and head on over to the Blue Room."</p><p>C.J.'s brow rose at the name.</p><p>"The Blue Room," she said, "Sounds like…"</p><p>Jill broke in.</p><p>"It's called exotic dancing," she explained, "but it's really a bunch of men…"</p><p>"Hot looking men," Cindy broke in.</p><p>"Okay whatever," Jill said, "but they prance around in costumes and then take them off."</p><p>C.J.'s eyes widened.</p><p>"Oh."</p><p>Cindy eyed her carefully.</p><p>"C.J., do you have a boyfriend?"</p><p>She just looked at them.</p><p>"Well…no not at the moment."</p><p>Cindy nodded.</p><p>"Okay then what's the problem," she said, "Because I do have one and he doesn't care as long as I behave myself."</p><p>Claire nodded.</p><p>"And I have a husband and I never behave myself…"</p><p>Jill looked at them as if they were crazy.</p><p>"What about Lindsey?"</p><p>Cindy rolled her eyes.</p><p>"Oh she's too busy tonight to hang out with us," she said, "but just in case we'll leave her a note."</p><p>The four of them finished their drinks and they took off in their cars for the Blue Room after C.J. had received directions. She had checked her cell phone and had two messages from Matt back in L.A. but didn't answer them. If he thought she would change her mind, he was just crazy. And she would probably see him after she got back to L.A. tomorrow and popped in the office for her messages. But tonight, she was footloose and fancy-free.</p><p> </p><p>Matt drove through traffic that inched down one of the main thoroughfares before halting again. He looked out the window and saw that both directions on the street were packed with vehicles and he couldn't figure out where all of them were heading. All he had wanted to do was to find one woman in a city of hundreds of thousands of people. He had just left the hotel where he had spent all of about an hour settling in for he didn't know how long but hoped it wouldn't be more than a day or so. He had a full caseload of clients waiting his services back in L.A. But…he had to get this done first. He had to find her and persuade her to listen to reason. After all, she was a Harvard trained attorney and surely, she had the ability to do that quite well.</p><p>Earlier Matt had disembarked from the plane at San Francisco International Airport and stepped into the tarmac. He had decided only several hours ago to gas up the Lear Jet and head up to the Bay Area to talk some sense into his best friend. Talk her out of leaving L.A. and taking a job up here. Tell her how much he needed her back working with him at the agency. Yes, it was true in recent months he hadn't seen her all that much because Roy had moved to L.A. and he had slipped too easily into C.J.'s role as his sidekick and partner in investigating cases. C.J. hadn't said much about it but had kind of dropped into the background and had stuck to doing legal work.</p><p>But she hadn't appeared happy the last time they had spoke, not long after he broke it off with Elizabeth…like at the altar. He had been all gussied up in a tux and set to walk down that aisle with her waiting at the end of it, dressed up in white and he had to push himself into taking those steps towards her and his new life. But somehow, he had battled to even do that before Elizabeth herself had broken off the engagement with him. She had cited the fact that his dangerous work intruded in their personal life and with a crazed psychopath on the loose disrupting the ceremony, he couldn't really argue against her logic.</p><p>And when he thought about it, after the shock and dismay of the broken engagement receded, he had been relieved that the wedding had never taken place. Oh how guilty he had felt about that until he realized that it never would have worked between them. He needed a woman who would be much more understanding about the reality that investigation was one of his greatest passions and to not view his vocation in life as an intrusive mistress. Not to mention that she had to be gorgeous, intelligent, able to hold her own against him and be funnier than hell. Elizabeth just didn't score very highly in any of these categories and he didn't know who did. His cousin Will had joked and said that maybe he should sign him up for a round on some crazy reality show called Bachelor but he nipped that idea to the bud quickly. No, old Matlock would find his true love on his own…in due time. In the meanwhile, he had work to do, cases to solve and beautiful socialites to take to charity benefits and other social galas.</p><p>But the last part didn't satisfy him for as long as he might have thought. He wasn't quite the young buck he used to be but all his parts still worked. It's just that he wanted much more from women than he had been satisfied with in the past while out sowing his oats around the globe.</p><p>Roy had watched him with these personal struggles and had just shaken his head at amusement with them, poking fun at him on more than one stakeout they did together. But underneath his smile, Matt had bristled a bit. He had also looked around him and noticed that C.J. had made herself scarce again. He walked into the office one morning.</p><p>"Where's C.J.?"</p><p>Roy had been sipping his juice after returning from a vigorous round of tennis.</p><p>"Out."</p><p>Matt scratched his head.</p><p>"I can see that," he said, "Out where?"</p><p>"With a client."</p><p>Matt mentally thought back to his caseload and which ones C.J. had been handling.</p><p>"Which one?"</p><p>Roy looked at him as if he were daft.</p><p>"A client in a case that she took the other day," he said, "He's due in court."</p><p>Matt stopped and thought about that.</p><p>"She never told me…"</p><p>Roy looked at his nephew sagely.</p><p>"She didn't have time," he said, "She tried to run it past you and you were too busy with the Lancaster deal."</p><p>Matt remembered that case, where he and Roy had dashed around the Palisades trying to apprehend an illegal dealer in exotic animals. They had spent a good part of the day on the roof of Roy's SUV while a Komodo Dragon held them at bay.</p><p>He remembered what had happened when he had bumped into his best friend and they had discussed that case. Not that they had done that for very long.</p><p>Now days later, he had hopped on his Lear Jet to go to the Bay Area, track her down and persuade her not to resign from his agency and head off to the Bay Area. Looking at the massive crowds of people in the terminal as he opened its doors, he knew he had his work cut out for him.</p><p>But no problem seriously, once he looked at her and plead his case, she would certainly weaken. After all, they had been close friends nearly their entire lives, that would definitely work in his favor.</p><p>Suddenly, however he heard a disturbing noise and his car began to list on one side. Damn rental, he should have shipped up one of his sports cars but remembered that hadn't seemed practical at the time. He reluctantly navigated his way out of the gridlock and tried to find a place to pull over.</p><p> </p><p>C.J. drove her car into the parking lot of the Blue Room and saw that the other three women had arrived.</p><p>"I texted Lindsey on where she could find us," Cindy said as they walked towards the club.</p><p>A bouncer greeted them with a grim expression.</p><p>"Hey Bo, drop us a smile," Cindy said, patting his hefty shoulder, "We're here to liven up things a bit."</p><p>He did what she wanted and then checked out her friends.</p><p>"Party of four," he said, "Your regular table waits…"</p><p>The other women looked at her.</p><p>"Regular table," Jill asked.</p><p>Cindy didn't even look embarrassed but amusement showed in her eyes.</p><p>"I come here…sometimes after making a really hard deadline," she said, "Oh come off of your high horses, we all think about the same thing when we're stressed."</p><p>"I think about food," Claire said, "not semi-naked men…except my husband of course."</p><p>C.J. entered with the others and checked the place out. Far from being seedy, the décor appeared quite stylish if a bit retro and the waiters that carried drinks around appeared well…mostly dressed. One of them looked their way and brought a tray of martinis over to them. They all grabbed one and Cindy plopped the olive off the toothpick into her mouth.</p><p>"Oh, I love this," she said, "Come on, let's sit down and check them out!"</p><p>Jill glowered.</p><p>"This is exploitation," she said, "at least that's what you would be saying if they were women."</p><p>Cindy shrugged.</p><p>"If it's good enough for us," she said, "It's more than good enough for them."</p><p>Some men stood on a stage and were surrounded by women with what looked like dollar bills in their hand. Jill watched them in distaste.</p><p>"Just look at what they're doing."</p><p>Claire cast an analytical eye.</p><p>"Looks like everyone's having a good time."</p><p>C.J. knew from experience that there was a lot of exploitation in this business as well as others and that women were ripe to be mistreated, a lesson she learned while amnesiac in Bannon County where she had spent time locked up in a detention facility that was being used as part of a prostitution ring. But the men who danced on the stage appeared to be having more fun than the female inmates back in that remote town in the Arizona desert.</p><p>"There's one coming this way," Cindy reported.</p><p>She reached into her wallet. Jill rolled her eyes and Cindy looked at her, laughing.</p><p>"Girl, you need to take a chill pill," she said, "Are you like this around your boyfriends?"</p><p>Jill harrumphed.</p><p>"Of course not," she said, "Not that I have one at the moment."</p><p>Cindy snorted.</p><p>"I can see why."</p><p>Jill sighed.</p><p>"I need to spend time by myself."</p><p>Cindy just folded her arms.</p><p>"That's what you've been saying for months now," she said, "You need to live a little."</p><p>"I'm doing just fine…"</p><p>C.J. watched the banter and she knew that Cindy genuinely cared for her friend but she could understand Jill's defensiveness. Besides Jill had always had a little of that as long as she had known her sorority sister. And she had been teased a lot about it by the others in their house but not C.J. After all, who was she to talk? During most of her college years, she had been studying most of the time or tutoring other students for extra money. Often it interfered with her involvement in sorority activities but she had her eye sharply focused on her dreams of being an attorney and Jill had that same commitment too. And the woman had turned out to be one of the bay area's kickass prosecutors, as C.J. learned firsthand earlier in the day.</p><p>She herself had felt out of practice because she had been focusing on corporate law to help Matt with his businesses. But the excitement of the criminal case she had been hired to handle for her mentor F. Lee Bailey had stirred the embers of how much she really enjoyed this branch of law. Much more than her earlier case involving the murdered teens of Lake Utah had done.</p><p>Cindy poked C.J.</p><p>"Hey, why are you off daydreaming when these hot men are in our midst, here to make us happy?"</p><p>C.J. looked up at the male stripper who had well, removed all of his construction style clothing down to his rather skimpy underclothes. He flexed his pectorals and flashed them all a grin as the women around them began reaching for their wallets.</p><p>But C.J. didn't really see him at all. She saw someone else.</p><p> </p><p>Matt looked at his watch as he waited for the triple A man to come change the tire on his car. He could have deftly handled the task himself…if the car had a spare which it did not. So he had to sit on his hands when he needed to be out finding C.J. while he awaited assistance. He had called the friend that C.J. had been staying with to ask where she might be and the woman had told her that C.J. had planned to spend the evening with the prosecutor who had gone up against her during her court hearing that day.</p><p>That narrowed it down a bit but not a whole lot because after all, San Francisco looked like a huge city, on the ground. But Matt knew his investigative skills and determination to find her would bear fruit probably before the night ended.</p><p>Suddenly, he looked up and saw a blue car with a siren light attached to it pull up behind him. He didn't know if that were good news or bad but the woman with the long brunette hair who got out of the car didn't appear hostile. She appeared to be sizing him up as she approached, wearing slacks and a print blouse and of course, a badge.</p><p>"My car broke down," Matt said, "Tire's flat and I don't have a spare."</p><p>She just nodded.</p><p>"That's a tough break," she said, "It'll take hours to get help for it. Lots of cars broke down on the bridges tonight."</p><p>Matt didn't really like the sound of that. He wanted to get going quickly so he could continue his search.</p><p>"I can't stay here then," he said, "I've been looking for someone."</p><p>She flashed her eyes at him.</p><p>"Your wife?"</p><p>He shook his head.</p><p>"My business partner and best friend," he said, "She came up here on a case and we didn't part on the best of terms so…"</p><p>The officer folded her arms.</p><p>"You wanted to check up on her."</p><p>"I need to talk to her," he said, "I don't want her to quit her job due to some misunderstanding."</p><p>She sighed.</p><p>"Why is it that the men always think that it's the woman who doesn't understand correctly?"</p><p>He looked up at her.</p><p>"What did you say?"</p><p>Then she realized she had said her thoughts out loud.</p><p>"Nothing," she said, all business again, "I can give you a lift somewhere if you'd like and call in for your car to be towed back to your hotel. The rental should cover it."</p><p>He brightened.</p><p>"That would be great," he said, "as for the ride, I'm not sure where I'm heading."</p><p>"I'm off-duty until tomorrow," she said, "So I could drive you around to a couple places but I do have a situation I have to check out at one of our clubs."</p><p>"And you're…"</p><p>She smiled for the first time.</p><p>"I'm Lt. Lindsey Boxer with the San Francisco PD."</p><p>"Matt Houston, private investigator out of L.A."</p><p>She nodded.</p><p>"Okay get in the car and we'll get going," she said, "I've been invited by my friends to join them at a club but the club has been a source of police complaints for quite a while. Not surprising considering its nature."</p><p>"It's what?"</p><p>She turned to face him.</p><p>"It's a club with exotic dancers," she explained, "Male dancers."</p><p>His brows rose.</p><p>"I imagine that your vice squad might be checking in from time to time."</p><p>"Them and Narcotics," she said, "We busted some dealers in the back room just last month."</p><p>"Haven't you thought of shutting the place down?"</p><p>She sighed.</p><p>"There's a whole process with that," she said, "and as soon as the owner got wind of it, he had some of the more…loyal customers sign petitions and send them straight to City Hall."</p><p>Matt nodded, understanding or so he thought.</p><p>"Anyway, my friends are right in the middle of it," Lindsey said, "but it's their choice of entertainment not mine."</p><p>"Why did they go tonight?"</p><p>"Oh Cindy, the crime reporter got transferred to writing feel-good features and she needed to blow off some steam," Lindsey said, "Claire and Jill are just along for the ride and Jill brought the lawyer who went up against her in court this morning…makes for a lively evening out."</p><p>Matt didn't doubt that. He supposed he had some time to ride with Lindsey while thinking of the different places he could look for C.J. He wondered idly what kind of friends Lindsey had while they drove to the club.</p><p> </p><p>C.J. took her second round of drinks as the other women gathered around one of the male dancers who smiled at them.</p><p>"Anyone want to dance," he drawled.</p><p>He had been the one dressed up like a cowboy complete with hat, boots and lariat. One who reminded her a little of…never mind.</p><p>"What about you," he said, looking at her.</p><p>She stared up at him.</p><p>"I don't think so," she said, "I've had a long day and wouldn't be much fun."</p><p>"All the better," he said, reaching his hand down.</p><p>"Oh go on," Cindy said, "It will be fun."</p><p>C.J. wasn't so sure of that but she thought back to that last conversation she had back in L.A. and felt emboldened so she let him take her hand and pull her up on the stage. Then the dancing began and she had to say, it felt nice to have a man pay attention to her. One who hadn't been a psychotic murderer or killed by one. All of her men appeared to fall into those two categories these days and she had begun to feel burned out by the whole dating scene. He grabbed her waist and pulled her closer as the music slowed down. She closed her eyes against his shoulder and just went with it.</p><p> </p><p>Matt and Lindsey pulled up at the Blue Room and Lindsey pointed out some familiar looking cars.</p><p>"They're here," she said, "We'll just walk inside."</p><p>A man dressed in faded jeans and a tank shirt walked up to them.</p><p>"The bouncer," Matt asked.</p><p>"No, one of the vice detectives," Lindsey said, "What's up Vic?"</p><p>He looked Matt over and shrugged.</p><p>"There's some dancing going on inside there with some rowdy women," he said, "I believe you know them and they've got some sexy brunette spitfire with them."</p><p>Lindsey shook her head.</p><p>"Anything happening besides that?"</p><p>"Narcotics shut down some drug dealing in the corner lot," he said, "and there's been some underage patronage."</p><p>Lindsey took a deep breath.</p><p>"Is Rich around?"</p><p>Vic nodded.</p><p>"He's working the bar," he said, "but you won't be able to see through his disguise."</p><p>"I know my own partner…"</p><p>Matt and Lindsey walked away from Vic and headed into the joint.</p><p>C.J. enjoyed dancing with the man and had gone through a couple numbers with him already. She felt the buzz of a couple of shots of tequila and felt the events of the past few days fade from her memory, as she enjoyed herself. Cindy had gotten on the stage with another dancer.</p><p>Jill looked at Claire.</p><p>"Have they gone crazy or what?"</p><p>Jill nibbled on some pretzels.</p><p>"It's normal for Cindy but C.J…well I haven't seen this side of her in a long time."</p><p>Claire eyed the bar.</p><p>"That weirdo bartender is eying them again," she said, "What's his problem?"</p><p>Cindy looked at the doorway.</p><p>"Look there's Lindsey and who's that guy with her?"</p><p>Claire checked him out.</p><p>"Doesn't look like Joe," she said, "Maybe it's another cop."</p><p>Cindy shrugged.</p><p>"Could be," she said, "Look they're coming our way."</p><p>Lindsey and Matt had entered the bar and right away, Matt's observation skills had led him quickly in C.J.'s direction. His eyes widened as he watched her dancing on the stage with some strange man wearing not very much. He closed his eyes for a second, waiting for his mind to catch up with what he had just witnessed.</p><p>"Oh my god," he said, simply.</p><p>Lindsey gave him a funny look.</p><p>"What's the matter," she said, "It's just my friends having a good time."</p><p>"The woman on the stage," he said, "That's my friend."</p><p>Lindsey watched her dance.</p><p>"She's pretty good," she said, "Cindy's in fine form as usual."</p><p>They walked over to where Claire and Jill sat, watching all the activity. The two women looked up at them.</p><p>"Hi Lindsey, took you forever to get here," Claire noted.</p><p>Jill just crossed her arms.</p><p>"You should have seen them earlier…"</p><p>Matt watched the woman that he had spent most of his life with and realized that just when he thought he had known everything to know about her, she had knocked him through a loop once again.</p><p>"What's C.J. doing?"</p><p>Jill just stared at him.</p><p>"I think it's obvious," she said, "It's called dancing."</p><p>"I know that," he said, "It's just that this is a side of her I've never seen."</p><p>"She's been dancing with that guy for about 30 minutes," Jill explained, "Cindy joined her soon after."</p><p>"What are you doing up here anyway," Claire said, "You are the man she works with aren't you?"</p><p>"Yes I am," he said, "I'm up here because I need to talk with her. We had a bit of a disagreement."</p><p>"A fight," Jill corrected.</p><p>"She told you about it?"</p><p>Jill nodded.</p><p>"You know you can be a jerk Matt," she said, "and I always remembered you being a nice guy."</p><p>Now Matt felt lost and a bit taken aback at her criticism.</p><p>"What is going on here," he said, "We just had a disagreement…about business."</p><p>Jill shook her head.</p><p>"You know it was more than that," she said, "C.J. really felt that you were pushing her away. That you didn't need her around anymore since…"</p><p>Matt guessed the rest of it.</p><p>"My uncle came to town."</p><p>"That's why she came up here to handle the case for Bailey," Jill said, "and she's dropped her card and resume off at some law firms."</p><p>So she really had gone and done it, Matt thought, she really was leaving him and the agency. Not that he could really blame her, because he had done just what she had told him he had done. And now she danced on a stage looking like she was having a great time, not giving any thought to what she had left behind in L.A.</p><p>"I don't want her to leave," he said, suddenly feeling helpless.</p><p>"Then why you don't just tell her that," Claire said, "Make her happy and get yourself out of the doghouse."</p><p>Matt pondered that. Lindsey flashed a look at Rich and he left his gig at the bar and walked on over.</p><p>"What's up partner," he asked.</p><p>Lindsey gestured up to the stage.</p><p>"Your girlfriend's up on that stage."</p><p>Rich shook his head.</p><p>"She's got this wild side to her," he said, "I just can't tame and who's that other chick up there?"</p><p>"This here is Matt and that's his business partner C.J. up there."</p><p>Rich watched the women dancing, unaware of their presence.</p><p>"She's pretty hot," he said, "You're a lucky man but clearly not a smart one."</p><p>Matt studied the bartender cop.</p><p>"Say again?"</p><p>"How could you ever let a woman like that go," he said, "Some other guy's going to win her away from you."</p><p>Matt rubbed his head.</p><p>"It's not like that between us."</p><p>Now Rich cast him a critical eye.</p><p>"Then you're more stupid than I even thought," he said, "I mean if I weren't with Cindy, I would be…"</p><p>Lindsey put up her hand.</p><p>"Rich…later," she said, "We've got to decide what to do with this joint."</p><p>He looked disinterested.</p><p>"It's got borderline criminal element and you know what happened last time," he reminded her.</p><p>Oh yes, the crates filled with petitions by angry and distraught customers to protest the closing of the Blue Room. Letters filled with testimony of how this club had changed their lives, had allowed the women of San Francisco to cut loose and enjoy themselves. The mayor eying a reelection bid just couldn't commit political suicide by shutting the place down.</p><p>He just shook his head.</p><p>"My girl's one hell of a dancer…"</p><p>Matt looked at him.</p><p>"You mean it doesn't bother you that she's up there dancing with…"</p><p>"A semi-naked guy," Claire chimed in helpfully.</p><p>Rich chuckled.</p><p>"She might be up on the stage with Mr. GQ now but later on, she'll be coming home to me."</p><p>With that, he sauntered back to the bar, leaving Matt and Lindsey to handle the situation. Matt looked at C.J. dancing on the stage, totally at a loss of what to do.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>C.J. closed her eyes and her body did her dancing for her, following the beat of the music where it led and she thoroughly enjoyed the feeling of a man's arms around her holding her closely. Damn, she hadn't had enough of that in a long time. Not well, since Robert. The silver tongued, stylishly dressed cad who had returned to her life, well really he had come to L.A. to take an anchor job but their paths had crossed and va-voom!</p><p>While in college, he had seemed like just another friend of Matt's and she hadn't understood his appeal, the charisma that her sorority sisters felt whenever in their vicinity. He had been in the school's journalism program after spending two years at Rice University, Matt's alma mater, mostly chomping at the bit while working at the college's two-bit newspaper. He had always been attracted to seeing his face on live television, reporting the news and moving up through the ranks. Working his way across the United States, C.J. hadn't seen or even heard from him for a long time until he had flown out for a round of interviews with the different stations in L.A. before getting hired. She had fallen into his arms and then his bed in short order and for the first time since her boyfriend, Carl had been murdered, she had envisioned a future with a husband and family.</p><p>But all that had ended when Matt had told her that Robert had engineered a kidnapping and had committed murder to further his career. She had taken out the pain that ripped through her out on her best friend, even threatening to resign from his company. But she realized soon enough that Matt would never deliberately hurt her, unless it was necessary to protect her from greater harm. And he had given her enough space to figure that out herself. Just like a best friend would do.</p><p>She continued dancing trying to move past that failed relationship to something more pleasant but what had followed that heartbreak had been a nearly fatal bullet wound and a bout of amnesia which left her held prisoner and nearly forced into prostitution in some backwoods town. The elation of the rescue of Matt's cousin Will who had been thought dead for so many years had been tempered by the loss of her childhood friend Julia while Matt and she had been working on a case.</p><p>All those times Matt had been the steadfast presence in her life, her rock and she had done the same for him. Neither had needed to be asked either, they just offered that to each other no questions asked. So why then had he started taking her for granted? Always assumed she'd be there in the office waiting for him to return from some adventure with his new partner, Roy. Not that she begrudged the former operative because she had always been fond of him, but she felt pushed out on to the fringes of her friend's life. Even when he had gotten engaged and she had tried to talk to him about how she felt, he had interrupted what she wanted to say before she could finish. Then the wedding of the year as some media outlets had called it had never happened. Elizabeth had taken off and hadn't been seen since and Matt had returned to work the next day on a stakeout with Roy as if nothing had changed.</p><p>C.J. had grabbed any opportunity that she could to find new challenges in her life and so when Bailey had hit her up with another one of his last minute favors, she had jumped at it and had jumped on the first plane, leaving Matt a note through his staff of secretaries.</p><p>And going up against one of San Francisco's prosecutor in a preliminary hearing had been so exhilarating in ways she hadn't expected. It had been better than sex. Well, okay maybe not but the next best thing, definitely and that's when she began to think that she wanted to be a kickass criminal defense attorney like she had been earlier in her legal career. She dropped off her card and resume at some firms that she had researched on the internet and they had definitely seemed interested. And it felt nice to be appreciated for her legal skills.</p><p>"C.J…."</p><p>She could see her new life unfolding ahead of her. She would build her reputation as a tough trial attorney, buy a house on a bluff overlooking the bay and maybe start dating again…</p><p>"C.J…"</p><p>Wait, a familiar voice she thought, opening her eyes and the man she danced with hadn't been the one talking.</p><p>"What's the matter babe," he asked.</p><p>Damn, something was intruding on her reverie about looking into the most amazing pair of blue…no brown eyes she had ever seen and wavy…dark hair and…wait a minute, the guy standing in front of her in a business suit and cowboy boots with his arms folded looked awfully familiar…</p><p>"C.J…"</p><p>She blinked her eyes.</p><p>"Houston…"</p><p>She kept dancing with the exotic dancer and the tempo of the music started to slow down again and their movements changed along with it. Jill turned to Matt.</p><p>"I can see that got her attention," she said, "Well, she did have a couple of shots of tequila."</p><p>Now Matt's eyes blinked. C.J. hadn't been much of a drinker since he had known her. Even when nursing a broken heart courtesy of that murderous jerk Robert, she had stuck to juice. Something about taking her sorrows sober, but apparently his friend had bent her own rules at least when it came to having a good time.</p><p>"C.J. honey now I know you're having fun but…"</p><p>She finally let the man go and turned to face him.</p><p>"Houston, what the hell are you doing here," she asked.</p><p>"I was looking for you actually," he said, "and I ran into Lindsey and she had to check on this place."</p><p>C.J. tilted her face.</p><p>"Lindsey…isn't she Jill's cop friend?"</p><p>Matt nodded.</p><p>"She's right here," he said, "She came to check up on her friends."</p><p>C.J. tripped and the dancer caught her swooping her in his arms again.</p><p>"That's nice of her," she said, "We've been having ourselves a real good time with these nice guys."</p><p>Matt turned to Jill.</p><p>"How many shots did she have anyway?"</p><p>Jill shrugged.</p><p>"I don't think she's drunk but she's sure emboldened."</p><p>Matt couldn't disagree, not recognizing the woman in front of him. Damn, she looked beautiful as she always did but when had she learned to dance like that?</p><p>Jill followed his glance.</p><p>"She had a couple wild times in college but not many…"</p><p>Cindy wobbled off the stage.</p><p>"I think I need another drink," she said.</p><p>Claire pulled on her arm.</p><p>"Maybe you'd better sit down and take a break for a while."</p><p>Cindy frowned at her.</p><p>"You're not much fun," she said, "What did you do with Claire?"</p><p>Claire just shook her head.</p><p>"Don't you know Rich is tending bar?"</p><p>Cindy looked around, squinting her eyes to see better. Then those eyes widened.</p><p>"Damn, he looks hot in that getup," she said, "And that earring looks better on him than it did on me."</p><p>Claire just looked at Lindsey.</p><p>"I think they both had too much stress to burn off tonight."</p><p>Matt studied C.J. who had started wrapping her arms around the dancer's neck drawing him closer. That rankled him and he reproached himself for that but seriously how well did she know the guy that she had done some of what had been called back in the day…dirty dancing?</p><p>"She just met him an hour ago," Jill said reading his thoughts.</p><p>"I've got to get her out of her especially if they raid this place."</p><p>Cindy's brows shot up and the other women looked at him.</p><p>"You've got to be kidding me," Cindy said, "I signed that damned petition the last time they did it. They wouldn't let me run it in the paper but I gathered signatures at work anyway."</p><p>All Matt could think of was getting C.J. off of that stage and out of the club, but that meant extricating herself from her current dance partner. Lindsey had gone to confer to Rich to see if there had been any more signs of drug dealing and other illicit activity in the joint. He watched C.J. dance with the man, her body pressed against his for a moment and then stepped up onto the stage.</p><p>"What's he doing," Cindy asked.</p><p>Jill sighed.</p><p>"Getting her away from that sleaze."</p><p>Cindy put her hands on her hips.</p><p>"He's really too hot to be slime," she said, "and she doesn't seem to mind where he's putting his hands."</p><p>Then she looked over at the doorway and her eyes narrowed in curiosity before widening in what looked to the others like horror.</p><p>"What's wrong Cindy," Claire asked.</p><p>She just pointed to the doorway where another woman stood next to a guy with a camera around his neck.</p><p>"It's the traitorous intern who stole my crime beat and the lecherous cameraman," she said.</p><p>The pair walked into the club looking around at the crowd of people while they headed to the bar.</p><p>"What are they doing here," Jill said.</p><p>"They must have gotten some tip from a source that something's going down here like some police action."</p><p>Jill groaned.</p><p>"Damn, I got to get the hell out of her before I wind up on the front page of the newspaper and my trial ends before it begins."</p><p>Cindy's nostrils flared.</p><p>"Why are you so concerned about yourself," she said, "Those creeps have stolen my beat. I should be the one getting sent to cover whatever's going to happen next."</p><p>Jill smirked.</p><p>"You can't," she said, "You're too busy gyrating with the hired help in front of everyone here."</p><p>Cindy smiled.</p><p>"I guess that's some consolation," she said, "I've still got it after all."</p><p>She started to get back on the stage but wobbled.</p><p>"Better slow down Cindy," Claire said.</p><p>Matt had stepped up on the stage which had been steadier than it appeared but C.J. appeared not to notice. She still had her attention on the dancer. Matt tapped on his shoulder.</p><p>"Mind if I cut in?"</p><p>The dancer looked at him.</p><p>"Are you the guy they hired as the CEO themed stripper?"</p><p>Matt looked confused.</p><p>"No, I just need to talk to my friend there."</p><p>The dancer threw him a disinterested look.</p><p>"She's already got a partner."</p><p>C.J. looked at Matt.</p><p>"What are you doing here," she said, "Why aren't you back solving cases in L.A?"</p><p>He rubbed the back of his neck.</p><p>"I was worried about you."</p><p>She softened and she let go of the dancer.</p><p>"You don't have to be," she said, "I'm up here doing a case and I'll be back tomorrow."</p><p>He nodded.</p><p>"We can go back together," he said.</p><p>"Oh that's really sweet Houston," she said, "but it's not necessary."</p><p>"Come on, let's go back to the hotel…"</p><p>She wouldn't budge.</p><p>"I'm having fun here and I'm staying with a friend."</p><p>He folded his arms, matching her stubbornness.</p><p>"You can't drive back."</p><p>"Okay, I'll get a ride back," she said.</p><p>He sighed.</p><p>"Come back with me," he said, "We need to talk."</p><p>She chuckled.</p><p>"We talk all the time," she said, "or at least we used to…you've been very busy lately."</p><p>"So have you," he countered, "And there's talk that you're relocating."</p><p>She waved her hand.</p><p>"I was just thinking about it," she said, "I'm going to make some changes…and it's nice up here."</p><p>"It's nice back in L.A."</p><p>She just shook her head at him.</p><p>"Excuse me, I'm busy dancing," she said, "You can get back to me later through my secretary."</p><p>She returned to dancing with her partner and Matt got off of the stage. Cindy looked at him.</p><p>"She doesn't look too happy with you."</p><p>Matt knew that and wondered what to do next. He couldn't lose her to…San Francisco, not like this until he explained to her why he had kept her at arm's length well at least since his engagement to Elizabeth fizzled. Rich wandered over to talk to Lindsey.</p><p>"There's some guys packing some serious heat who just walked in," he said, "I don't know how they got past Bo."</p><p>Lindsey sighed.</p><p>"They're called hormones," she said, "and Bo is chocked full of them. He wouldn't see an army of Mafia hit men if they marched right in."</p><p>"What are we going to do?"</p><p>Lindsey hated saying the next words. They were the type that could end more than one career here.</p><p>"We need to raid this place before someone gets killed," she said, "They came here looking for a fight."</p><p>Lindsey looked around the room that was packed with women having a good time ogling men and stuffing money in their skimpy outfits while they danced.</p><p>"This isn't going to go well with the mayor," he said, "You know he's up for reelection and shut down this place and there will be a mob at his office in the morning."</p><p>"Screw the mayor."</p><p>He gave her a double take.</p><p>"Lindsey…"</p><p>She put her hands on her hips.</p><p>"No I mean it," she said, "Not literally but it's our job to keep peace and to keep the public safe."</p><p>"They're going to be putting us all on riot duty tomorrow," he reminded her.</p><p>She shrugged.</p><p>"That's then and this is now," she said, "Call in the troops pronto and we'll get started."</p><p>Rich went to phone headquarters for permission to utilize the SWAT team while Lindsey knew she had to tell her friends. If only they would listen to her. She decided to start with the easier ones.</p><p>"Claire, you're going to have to leave," she said, "There's going to be some police action and I don't want you caught in the middle of it."</p><p>Her friend nodded.</p><p>"That's great," she said, "Well be sure to keep them on the other side of the room."</p><p>Lindsey felt like throwing up her arms. Claire patted her shoulder.</p><p>"Just kidding," she said, "I'll help round up the others and herd them on out."</p><p>Matt looked up.</p><p>"I'll handle C.J."</p><p>Lindsey's brow rose.</p><p>"Need any help there?"</p><p>He shook his hand.</p><p>"I can handle it."</p><p>He stepped up on the stage and touched her shoulder. She spun around and stared at gun.</p><p>"What's up?"</p><p>He took a deep breath.</p><p>"We have to leave now."</p><p>She looked at him as if he were crazy.</p><p>"Why," she said, "We didn't come together and I'm having a great time with Jack here…"</p><p>"Joe," the dancer corrected.</p><p>"Whatever...Houston, why don't you get yourself a drink before heading back to L.A.," she said, "Put it on my tab."</p><p>The dancer looked at the both of them.</p><p>"Maybe I'd better leave you alone to work this out," he said, "But I get off at 2."</p><p>She nodded as he walked off. Then she turned to look at Matt.</p><p>"I was having a good time."</p><p>"I know."</p><p>She folded her arms at him.</p><p>"So now that you've got my attention," she said, "Where are we going."</p><p>"Back to the hotel."</p><p>She smiled then and nodded.</p><p>"Okay that'll work," she said, "You're kind of cute for an alpha male."</p><p>"An alpha what?"</p><p>She shook her head impatiently.</p><p>"Never mind," she said, "So do you want to dance?"</p><p>He felt rest her hands on his shoulders.</p><p>"C.J…"</p><p>She smiled again.</p><p>"Come on, let's dance…unless you're too shy or something…"</p><p>Damn, the situation was spinning out of control quickly. Here he was trying to get her out of an establishment before it was going to get raided and she had her mind on other things. He couldn't believe that she was coming onto him.</p><p>"C.J. we need to get out of here."</p><p>"Later…let's do some dancing first, and then I'll leave with you…"</p><p>She moved her arms down to his hips and pulled him closer to her. He sighed because he couldn't believe how good it felt for her to be that close to him. Her fingers enticed him, her cologne intoxicated him and…</p><p>Her lips brushed against him even before he saw that coming and before he knew it, she had deepened her kiss. And damn, it felt good so before he realized it himself, he had responded, drawing her closer this time.</p><p>Jill rolled her eyes at the sight.</p><p>"I guess they've worked it all out."</p><p>Cindy beamed.</p><p>"Bravo, way to go."</p><p>Jill threw her a pithy glance.</p><p>"She won't remember it when she wakes up in the morning with a hangover."</p><p>Cindy threw her a face back.</p><p>"Jill, when did you get to be such a wet blanket?"</p><p>Jill just turned and showed her friend her back. Claire walked up to both of them.</p><p>"We're going to have to get our butts out of here," she said, "They're bringing in the big guns to clear it out."</p><p>Cindy shook her head.</p><p>"So that's why the snot-faced intern is here right now."</p><p>The intern and the photographer were walking around talking to people but not having much luck. Cindy hoped they wouldn't come near because she felt like clobbering both of them with the camera.</p><p>Lindsey and Rich met up with some other police officers outside the joint. They had decked themselves out in riot gear prepared for the task at hand.</p><p>"When do we go in," the squad leader asked.</p><p>"When I say you do," Lindsey said, "I'll call you on the radio."</p><p>He nodded and they gathered in formation and headed to the other side of the parking lot.</p><p>Rich looked towards the club.</p><p>"Cindy's plastered," he said, "I don't want her in the middle of all this."</p><p>Lindsey sighed.</p><p>"We'll do the best we can to get them out of there," she said, "but all bets are off if those bad guys in there start waving their firepower."</p><p>Matt enjoyed the feel of his best friend's body against his own and her mouth on his, drawing him eve closer. But then the more rational side of him spoke up and he realized that he had to exercise some restraint here because for her, it was the liquor speaking. So he did the difficult thing which was to try to extricate himself from her embrace.</p><p>"C.J…I don't think."</p><p>"That's great because I'm not thinking right now either."</p><p>He sighed, as her fingers ran through his hair sending tingles down his spine. This wasn't proving to be easy not when his own body refused to cooperate.</p><p>"We can't do this."</p><p>She broke her kiss and looked around her.</p><p>"You're right," she said, "Come on; let's go back to the hotel."</p><p>He looked at her, shocked.</p><p>"I don't think so."</p><p>She frowned at him.</p><p>"Why not," she said, "I'm kissing you, you're kissing me and I really want to see what you've been hiding underneath those clothes all these years."</p><p>His face flushed as a wave of heat ran through him.</p><p>"We need to get you sobered up here," he said, "You don't even know what you're saying."</p><p>Irritation prickled through her, joining the more pleasant sensations.</p><p>"Of course I do," she said, "You know those times when you were getting dressed and I told you I never watched…"</p><p>"Yeah I guess I do."</p><p>She winked at him.</p><p>"Well I lied," she said, "But come on, there's only so much a woman can take when a guy's as hot as you…"</p><p>Hot? He liked the sound of that but clearer heads had to prevail here.</p><p>"Okay well that's…okay," he said, "but we'll talk about it back at the hotel."</p><p>Now she scrutinized him.</p><p>"For a man of action, you sure want to do a lot of talking right now," she said, "Now hush and take me back to that hotel of yours and show me what made you People's Sexiest Millionaire."</p><p>Oh, Matt's mind told him this wasn't going well but his body…well it didn't exactly agree. He took a deep breath.</p><p>"Okay…we can go back to my suite and…talk this over…but we need to get out of here because things might get a little chaotic in here pretty soon."</p><p>She nodded.</p><p>"Okay because then I can tell you about the time that we were flying to the Bahamas, you know before we got…interrupted."</p><p>Oh, she meant hijacked by a band of terrorists led by the presumed to be dead but very much alive Marquis Duval.</p><p>"I remember that quite vividly."</p><p>She brightened.</p><p>"Before we got…diverted by that horrible kidnapping, I had plans on well, seducing you at the resort. I mean we really couldn't let our time spent in such a gorgeous romantic spot go to waste."</p><p>His eyes widened.</p><p>"You did?"</p><p>She nodded again.</p><p>"So I packed some really sexy lingerie…but it's back on Marquis Island because we left our luggage there when we escaped."</p><p>"We did, didn't we…?"</p><p>She sighed.</p><p>"The best laid plans…well anyway we can go back to the hotel and make up for lost time?"</p><p>Matt decided he had to go along with it…for now because he really had to get her out of this place.</p><p>"Come on; let's get off of this stage."</p><p>He helped her step down and she wrapped her arm around his waist and they walked back to the others.</p><p>"Ready to leave," he asked the others.</p><p>Jill shook her head.</p><p>"Cindy's going to kill that intern for stealing her beat," she said, "We got to get out of here before blood is shed or hair's pulled."</p><p>C.J. nodded and stroked Matt's face with her fingers.</p><p>"I'm all for that," she said, "Come on cowboy, let's go for a ride…"</p><p>Matt blanched. For being such a player with the women, he felt very much out of his league with this one. Whoever would have guessed?</p><p>Jill looked at the two of them.</p><p>"You've got your hands full with her."</p><p>Matt couldn't disagree but when he got C.J. back to the suite, he would make enough coffee to sober her up quickly. Hopefully leaving her with little memory of what was unfolding. C.J. however made it clear that she had other plans.</p><p>"I've always wanted to do this," she said, "Remember the day of the frog jumping contest?"</p><p>"Yes," Matt said, weakly.</p><p>"You know when you kissed me and then made that silly frog noise to get yourself off the hook?"</p><p>Matt nodded.</p><p>"Well let's just say that if Bo and Lamar hadn't been there," she said, poking him in the chest, "I would have shown you a thing or two."</p><p>He didn't doubt that now.</p><p>"I mean that Houston," she said, "Just like the time we were…"</p><p>"C.J. I don't think we really need to go there."</p><p>She frowned at him.</p><p>"But you know how romantic Singapore is in the Spring," she said, "You know we could have done all those dull business meetings and then filled the rest of our time there…doing other things much less boring."</p><p>Oh boy, C.J. had really gone on a tear here. He felt at a loss for words and truth be told, he had some confessions to make of his own but now wasn't the time or place. He just had to get her out of there.</p><p>Lindsey walked up to all of them.</p><p>"Are you ready to leave?"</p><p>They all nodded but one of them was missing.</p><p>"Where's Cindy," Lindsey asked.</p><p>None of them knew until Jill looked across the room and saw the reporter squaring off with her competition.</p><p>"Uh oh, there's trouble," Claire said.</p><p>Lindsey sighed.</p><p>"I'll handle it."</p><p>She walked off, shaking her head.</p><p>C.J. turned back to more important things.</p><p>"Houston, when I got shot and went to Hawaii to recover, why didn't you join me?"</p><p>He looked surprised.</p><p>"Join you?"</p><p>She nodded.</p><p>"It would have been great if you would have just come with me," she said, "I mean I had a great time but think about what kind of fun we could have had."</p><p>He sighed. Jill shook her head.</p><p>"She's going to be so embarrassed in the morning."</p><p>Matt knew that might indeed be the case if she remembered this night at all. Which he really hoped she wouldn't, didn't he? He ran his hand through his hair, wondering what to do or say next. Talk about navigating through a series of minefields here and he had never even seen the ones in front of him coming.</p><p>C.J. put her hand on his chest.</p><p>"Let's go take this somewhere else."</p><p>He nodded, just wanting to get out of there before the police raided and the others seemed willing to leave but not without Cindy. Speaking of which, they all heard a crash and looked over to see Cindy and the intern pushing and shoving each other with Rich rushing in to break up the fight.</p><p>"Oh lord," Claire said, going over to help.</p><p>Matt's attention focused elsewhere when he saw two men clearly packing move towards a man that Matt presumed managed the club. He looked around the room for Lindsey but she had seen them too. Rich had been busy pulling off a flailing Cindy off of the intern and making sure they both moved to their separate corners. C.J. followed Matt and he turned around to stop her.</p><p>"C.J. stay back with the others."</p><p>She rolled her eyes.</p><p>"I'm just fine Houston," she said, "and I'm not drunk but I loved the expression on your face back there."</p><p>He looked shocked.</p><p>"You mean…"</p><p>She nodded.</p><p>"You have your gun with you right?"</p><p>He looked at her warily.</p><p>"I always carry it," he said, "What about you?"</p><p>"In my ankle holster…"</p><p>"Your what?"</p><p>She smiled.</p><p>"When I dated that cop a while back, he got it for me retail."</p><p>Matt's stomach flipped and as he looked at her again, she winked.</p><p>"Come on," she said, "Lindsey might need our help."</p><p>They walked over to where Lindsey and Rich had turned over the handling of Cindy to both Claire and Jill. The lieutenant turned to Matt and C.J.</p><p>"You'd better leave," she said, "Things could get rough."</p><p>"Do you need our help," Matt asked.</p><p>"No, we're fine," Lindsey said, "The police can handle it."</p><p>Suddenly, some shouts broke through the music and everyone stopped talking and the exotic dancers froze in their positions. The mobster types that had alerted them to their presence earlier began pushing and threatening the manager of the club. One of them had a gun that he held to his side.</p><p>"It's all a misunderstanding," the manager said, "Why don't you come back tomorrow and we'll clear this up?"</p><p>The mobster men just pressed him further.</p><p>"Our boss has given you enough extensions on his generous loan to you," one of them said, "He's ready to get the deed now."</p><p>"But…"</p><p>One man jammed a gun in his waist.</p><p>"Now, go to the safe and get the deed to this establishment and we'll handle the transaction right now."</p><p>The manager in the face of some impressive firepower didn't know what else to do so he obeyed. Lindsey sighed and got on her radio telling the team to move in.</p><p>She and Rich rushed over with their guns on the mobster men and after taking the stance, yelled orders.</p><p>"Freeze right now."</p><p>Matt and C.J. looked over at them.</p><p>"Where are the rest of the police," she asked.</p><p>He didn't know so they kept an eye on what was going on. Claire tried to get Cindy to leave but in true journalistic style, the reporter had taken out her notepad and began taking jotting in it. The cameraman came up to her.</p><p>"Go get some front page shots," she barked at him.</p><p>He meekly obeyed.</p><p>Lindsey stared dead on at the mobster men.</p><p>"There's no other option for you but to surrender," she said, "so drop the weapons."</p><p>They just looked at her mutely.</p><p>"Right now would work well for me, how about you?"</p><p>They looked at each other and one of them began to lower his gun. The other turned and scowled at him.</p><p>"Don't be a wimp," he said, "What will your father think?"</p><p>The other man turned to him.</p><p>"I don't want to go out in a blaze of bullets," he said, "I'll get out of prison eventually."</p><p>Lindsey nodded.</p><p>"Wise choice," she said, "What about you bucko?"</p><p>The other man just glared and aimed his gun and took a shot. It went wild and missed everyone. But Matt took no chances and went to force C.J. on the ground to take cover. But she beat him to it and pushed him down first. The woman always had tripwire reflexes in dangerous situations.</p><p>"Hey this is kind of nice," she murmured, as they waited for the man to either surrender or keep firing.</p><p>He kept firing and everyone had to duck but he was such a bad shot that Lindsey and Rich just stood to the side, then Lindsey aimed her gun and fired once hitting him deftly in the shoulder and he dropped on the ground.</p><p>Both C.J. and Matt looked up from where they lay on the ground with him naturally shielding her body with his own. He looked around as the dust cleared and put his own gun away. Everyone began to get up again and talk excitedly until the doors opened and a flood of armed troops swept through the building and everyone had to lie down on the ground again while they cleared away the dangerous men. Lindsey handed off the wounded one to them and Rich had handcuffed the other. But everyone remained on the ground until the SWAT team could make sure there were no other mobster men hiding among them.</p><p>C.J. looked at Matt from where they lay.</p><p>"We could be here for awhile," she said, "How about a little pillow talk to pass the time?"</p><p>"What?"</p><p>She smiled.</p><p>"You know, I loved how you looked when I was talking to you back there…"</p><p>He appeared skeptical.</p><p>"I thought you were saying all that because you're drunk," he said, "but clearly you're not."</p><p>She smiled wider.</p><p>"You blush nicely when you're bashful."</p><p>"I wasn't bashful, I was…"</p><p>"Confused," she filled in.</p><p>"Hopeful…"</p><p>She looked him over.</p><p>"Say again?"</p><p>He sighed.</p><p>"Part of me really…appreciated your candor…but I couldn't do what you thought you wanted…"</p><p>"But I have a clear head and I know what I want," she said, "and I meant what I said, every word."</p><p>Now he blushed again and she stroked his face.</p><p>"You did?"</p><p>She nodded.</p><p>"I did a lot of thinking when I…ran away," she said, "There are so many things I wanted to say for so long…you know I almost did that day I spoke with you before your wedding."</p><p>"C.J., I never meant to shut you out and push you on the edge of my life," he said, "I think I just needed to do some thinking of my own."</p><p>They heard some yelling and saw that Cindy had been pulled to her feet to be frisked by the SWAT team before being led outside, but not before she asked the photographer if he got any good shots.</p><p>He answered from his position prone on the ground.</p><p>"I'll email them to you," he said.</p><p>"Later," she said and walked on out of there.</p><p>Matt turned back to C.J.</p><p>"I definitely don't want you on the fringes of my life," he said, "I want you as my partner…in every sense of the word."</p><p>Her heart jumped at that but she remained calm.</p><p>"Okay, I think I can work with that," she said, "if I go back to L.A."</p><p>Matt hoped that she would rethink her decision not to relocate to San Francisco and he would do anything necessary to persuade her that her home remained in L.A. with him. And he had quite an arsenal to work with, he thought with a smile.</p><p>The SWAT men grabbed them to be frisked and they stood still, allowing them to do that eager to be out of the club and on their way. Finally they walked out into the darkness of the parking lot which was crowded with confused and more than a few intoxicated people milling around. Some nuns had shown up with plenty of hot coffee, warm food and some coats for the exotic dancers.</p><p>Matt got some coffee and handed a cup to C.J.</p><p>"What a night," he said.</p><p>She winked at him.</p><p>"It's still young and I still haven't seen the inside of your suite."</p><p>Excitement filled him but he kept it in check. He rubbed her arms, looking at her.</p><p>"Okay we'll go back there…but only to talk," he said, "It's been a long day."</p><p>Claire wondered over.</p><p>"Well Jill's filling Cindy up with coffee until Rich gets off and can take her home," she said, "I like to say it's been nice but I think I'll just say never a dull moment in San Fran."</p><p>"I can see that."</p><p>Lindsey walked up to them.</p><p>"The place has been cleared out, the perps taken to jail and…I probably will not have a job tomorrow."</p><p>C.J. folded her arms.</p><p>"They can't do that," she said, "You just did your job."</p><p>Lindsey eyed her critically.</p><p>"You sure sobered up quickly."</p><p>Matt and C.J. just looked at each other and smiled.</p><p>"We'll get out of your hair now," he said.</p><p>C.J. nodded.</p><p>"Yeah we got other things to do," she said, smiling, "Other sights to see."</p><p>"His car broke down," Lindsey said, "I gave him a lift over here."</p><p>C.J. shrugged.</p><p>"I'll give him a ride back to his place."</p><p>Matt looked over at C.J.</p><p>"I'll drive."</p><p>C.J. just threw her hands up in the air.</p><p>"See, he always wants to take control," she said, "Do all the driving and…"</p><p>They both walked to the car and she handed him the keys quietly as they both got inside the car and drove away from the club.</p><p>They headed back to the hotel and after getting off at the top floor, stopped in front of the presidential suite. And indeed when C.J. saw the inside of it, she believed it to be as impressive as she had heard. At that point however, she was only interested in one room of it.</p><p>She looped her arm in his and started leading him towards the main bedroom.</p><p>"Come on," she said, "Show me those fabulous moves of yours…"</p><p>"C.J. I don't think…"</p><p>"Relax, I'm just kidding," she said, "When did you get so uptight anyway?"</p><p>That left him speechless. She headed to the generous couch and sat on it, patting the spot next to her.</p><p>"Come here," she said, "So we can have this discussion you wanted."</p><p>He sat down on the couch and she sidled on closer, not that he minded.</p><p>"So what did you have to say?"</p><p>"Well, you look very beautiful…"</p><p>She smiled at that.</p><p>"Thanks, that's very sweet," she said, "You always look great."</p><p>He sighed, feeling suddenly flustered.</p><p>"I meant what I said," he said, "I want you in my life. I want to work with you like we used to do and then…"</p><p>"You want us to have fun in other ways?"</p><p>She began stroking his hand in ways that heated his blood. But he really had to control himself here because after all, this wasn't one of his casual flings here; this was the woman that meant more to him than anyone ever had. And somewhere along the way, he had realized that.</p><p>"Well, I want to do what do they call it?"</p><p>"Date?"</p><p>He nodded and she seemed to think about that.</p><p>"Okay, I'll go out on a date with you," she said, "In fact, we can just start right now…though maybe we should think about breakfast after…"</p><p>Her fingers moved to his chest. He didn't know whether it was here or the liquor making her behave this way so he had to slow things down before his libido kicked into gear and did what it had wanted to do for so long.</p><p>"I want to start off slowly with this…"</p><p>She looked at him incredulous.</p><p>"Why," she asked, "I mean you…you're L.A.'s biggest stud…well one of the biggest…And I've seen you, you're like a runaway locomotive."</p><p>This time he touched her, gently brushing the hair off of her face with his fingers. She closed her eyes in response.</p><p>"I know…but that's how I feel about you," he admitted, "I really want to enjoy the whole experience of well…moving our friendship to the next level and not skip over any precious moment of that."</p><p>Oh, she liked that. He had a better way with words than she thought but then she saw his words and knew he wasn't playing…he meant what he said and her heart quickened.</p><p>"Okay…no sex tonight…then," she said, "But then we really haven't had that talk about our histories and…"</p><p>He finished her statement with another kiss and she wrapped her arms around him drawing him closely to her. When his lips left hers finally, he stroked her mouth with his fingers.</p><p>"I hope you like that…because there's more where that came from."</p><p>Her breath caught.</p><p>"Good," she said, as he pulled her closer to him so that her head rested against his chest.</p><p>"You've had quite a day," he said.</p><p>"It got a lot better towards the end," she said, and he heard sleepiness in her voice.</p><p>He smiled as she closed her eyes and snuggled closer, knowing that the next day would shine brighter, the birds would sing and their new lives together would begin. He would call the pilot of his Lear Jet to fuel her up for the trip to L.A. and make sure to stock up on some champagne and pizza. His last thought before closing his own eyes for the night would be excitement at what lie ahead for the both of them.</p>
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